91,309 Shares in Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE) Purchased by Raymond James Financial Inc.

Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:BHE) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 91,309 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,145,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.25% of Benchmark Electronics as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of Benchmark Electronics during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $50,000. KBC Group NV boosted its stake in Benchmark Electronics by 40.2% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,151 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $98,000 after acquiring an additional 617 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Benchmark Electronics by 12.9% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,547 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $116,000 after acquiring an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can increased its position in shares of Benchmark Electronics by 10.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 5,100 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $232,000 after purchasing an additional 495 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Summit Global Investments acquired a new stake in shares of Benchmark Electronics in the 4th quarter valued at about $242,000. 92.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Jeff Benck sold 6,000 shares of Benchmark Electronics stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.82, for a total transaction of $232,920.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 448,180 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,398,347.60. The trade was a 1.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 2.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Benchmark Electronics Trading Up 1.3 %

Benchmark Electronics stock opened at $38.17 on Friday. Benchmark Electronics, Inc. has a 1 year low of $29.52 and a 1 year high of $52.57. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $37.98 and its 200-day moving average is $43.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a current ratio of 2.32. The company has a market cap of $1.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.06 and a beta of 0.83.

Benchmark Electronics (NYSE:BHE) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The technology company reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by ($0.01). Benchmark Electronics had a return on equity of 6.68% and a net margin of 2.38%.

Benchmark Electronics Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 11th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were paid a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.78%. Benchmark Electronics’s payout ratio is currently 39.31%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on BHE. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price target on Benchmark Electronics from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com upgraded Benchmark Electronics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Benchmark Electronics presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $43.00.

Benchmark Electronics Profile

Benchmark Electronics, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, offers product design, engineering services, technology solutions, and manufacturing services in the Americas, Asia, and Europe. The company provides engineering services and technology solutions, including new product design, prototype, testing, and related engineering services; and custom testing and technology solutions, as well as automation equipment design and build services.